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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24761353">In the dark of the night</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/myotishia/pseuds/myotishia'>myotishia</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Psyonic [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Torchwood</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Gen, Multi, Other</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-07-05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 06:35:25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>12,937</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24761353</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/myotishia/pseuds/myotishia</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>A chain of events lead to the team being locked inside the hub overnight and they try to have a more relaxed evening.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Gwen Cooper/Rhys Williams, Jack Harkness/Ianto Jones, Owen Harper/Toshiko Sato</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Psyonic [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1766956</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>46</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. A slip of the hand</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>
    
  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ianto lifted two shopping bags up onto the kitchenette counter. He and Mel had spent the morning cleaning out anything expired, or empty. They’d also taken three plastic boxes containing what were leftovers, at some point in time, to the incinerator in case whatever was inside had gained sentience. They’d also replaced some of the oldest tableware and limited cookware. It had almost started to look liveable. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’d think with Jack living here he wouldn’t let the fridge get that bad.” Melody mused as she placed down a bag of her own. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ianto raised an eyebrow. “When did you find out?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It isn’t difficult to work out. I mean all his stuff is here and there’s no address on any of his paperwork. Even if he was a complete workaholic and just slept here some of the time he’d still have a secondary address.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And it took me six months to work out the same thing.” He muttered under his breath.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nothing. Anyway, Jack has a lot of things that you’ll eventually find out about him.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Couldn’t he just tell me?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ve been asking that for a long time. Apparently no.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I suppose that’s one way to keep an air of mystery.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He has his reasons. Try not to take it personally.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She finished unpacking the shopping bag she’d brought in. “I’m not. Until a few months ago I thought he might be a figment of my imagination, so he’s more than welcome to have his own secrets.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sure he appreciates it.” He smiled. “By the way, how’s the move going?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Pretty much done. It’s not like I have much to move.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Isn’t anything in your old flat yours?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Not much. I’ve got my clothes, my guitar, a few personal items and my mattress. I didn’t have the money for furniture before. I’m getting everything delivered next week. My nights will involve a date with miss flatpack and miss alan key.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ahh, I’ve met them before. Everything looks great on paper but they’re a lot of hard work.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I can’t do any worse than my last few dates. At least they probably won’t kill anyone.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Probably.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Probably.” She chuckled and turned to grab the last bag that had been left in the car. “Be right back.” On her way out she dodged Jack who’d been looking for his partner. He smiled as she swiftly apologised and trotted off. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I told you I didn’t need this much stored here.” The captain said, more amused than annoyed. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ianto continued putting everything away. “You can’t live on takeaway food.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“One, I don’t, and two, when was the last meal you had that wasn’t brought in a plastic tub?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s not the point. We both need to eat better… Has Tosh found what’s wrong with the doors yet?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“She’s working on it. It’s something to do with a bug in the security system from three updates ago. She’s so annoyed.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I would be too.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sure she’ll work it out.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course she will. She’s Tosh. Was there anything you needed sir?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I need you to find a few old files that weren’t digitised. I tried to find them myself but I know you hate it when I touch your filing system.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, I don’t hate you touching my filing system, I hate it when you pull out all the files and leave them for me to put back.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t know where to put them like you do.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Jack… They’re alphabetised.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was going to reply when he heard Owen cry out from down in the medical bay. He sprinted over to see the previously thought dead creature they’d had on ice for two days with its tentacles wrapped around Owens left arm. Jack fired into what he guessed was the things head and it fell limp while the injured doctor pulled off the fleshy bindings that were stinging him like a jellyfish. Now free he could deal with the sting, thanking whatever force that had a hand in the universes inner workings that they had a wide range antitoxin that could stop the sharp, stinging, pain that was shooting through the limb. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fuck!” He hissed, having to scrub away the leftover residue from his reddened arm. “The bloody thing was dead!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack was keeping one eye on the alien, seeing that the main trunk of its body was split wide open and half of its organs were already outside of its body. “Are you going to be ok?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yea, yea, I’m just pissed off. There was no way that was just an automatic reaction. It reached up my damn sleeve.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t think it’ll be getting up again.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Gwen had met Melody in the garage and they had just reached the main area of the hub, shopping in hand, as the lights went out. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No no no no no!” Tosh exclaimed, glancing from screen to screen at her workstation.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gwen dared to ask the obvious question. “What’s going on?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I fixed the security bug but… No. Come on, don’t do this.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She typed furiously, looking more and more frazzled, “but it created a conflict that’s sent the security system into a scan quarantine lock scan feedback loop. Because I rewrote the code that contained the bug it thinks of itself as a virus but it can’t just quarantine itself. I need to shut everything down and roll it back.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Doesn’t that mean-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’re in lockdown, yes.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“For how long?” Jack asked from the medical bay doorway.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If we’re lucky, five hours.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And if we’re not?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Up to twenty four.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Owen marched over to his desk, dressing his arm. “Lucky I don’t have to go to the hospital then.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Um…” Melody nudged Gwen in the arm and spoke softly. “What’s going on?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gwen glanced around. “We might be stuck in here tonight.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh… Ok.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t worry, it’s happened before. It won’t be that bad. And this time we won’t have to stay up in shifts because an angry alien is stalking around the place.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That happened?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Twice.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ianto wandered past as if what was going on wasn’t a big deal. “I wish she was joking.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“See?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sorry. I was writing the new coding and I jumped which ran it before it was ready and… Now we’re stuck.” Tosh sighed deeply and flopped into her chair as the monitors around the hub blinked off then began the rollback process.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack lent against the pillar nearby. “It’s fine.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I can probably use my laptop to isolate the main doors locking mechanism but that’ll leave it set open for a few days while I wire everything back up correctly.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Tosh. Relax. It’s fine.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, if we’re stuck here.” Owen said, not sounding as annoyed as everyone expected. “I’m going to go and put away that jellyfish bastard before it starts to smell. Anyone fancy holding a torch? The emergency lighting’s crap.”  </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As working had been rendered pretty much impossible, Ianto had busied himself finding the camp beds and bedding they had in storage. He’d taken what he could find to a side room that was large enough for everyone to be comfortable but still held in the heat. Some parts of the hub got very cold overnight, even with the heating as high as it would go. It was one of the downsides to being underground. Great mid summer, but not so much at the height of a particularly cold winter. He’d hung a lantern up on one of the old brackets so he could at least see. The only problem left was that they were short two beds. He suspected a couple had been either damaged or lost during a particularly traumatic outing. He supposed Jack would stay in his bunker and Ianto had a habit of sleeping there too so it shouldn’t be a problem. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I feel like a teenager all over again.” Gwen smiled from the doorway. “Haven’t got any cheap vodka hidden under the pillows have you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sadly, no. We’re facing this sober unless Jack decides to find the key to his drinks cabinet.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Shame. Dinner’s nearly ready.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll be right up. Is everyone behaving?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She gave a non committal “ehh.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Let me guess, Jack’s bored.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And driving Melody up the wall. She’s set aside a wooden spoon specifically to smack his hand every time he tries to steal a cookie.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“She’s baking?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“She got bored waiting for the water to boil so she found something to do. It smells amazing up there.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And Jack was complaining about me going shopping.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sure you’ll never let him forget that.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Not for a minute.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Soooo…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He turned to face her, seeing how uncomfortable she seemed. “What?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You know Melody pretty well, right?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think so, why?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Do you think she has… I don’t know… Feelings for me?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What? That was quick.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Gwen, she blushes when you so much as walk into a room. It’s a bit obvious.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why hasn’t anyone said anything then?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Because it’s not up to us to say anything. Is it a problem?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No. I mean, I don’t know.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“She’s not a lovestruck teenager. You’re taken and she’s ok with that. Is it going to be an issue? If it is you might want to go and talk to her now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, it’s fine. It’s not a big deal.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Gwen… Let her down gently. Please?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jack looked rather content, finishing off what was left of his cookie, still amused that Mel had thwarted his attempts to steal one earlier. He was one of the few people that could sneak up on her without her hearing their thoughts before they even got close. That didn’t mean she couldn’t see him trying to creep past her. Tosh had started to feel a little better, knowing that there were worse things that could have happened as this could be easily fixed. He looked over at Mel, who’d seemed on edge since the lockdown began, and suspected that was why she’d volunteered to cook. Just for something to do to keep her mind off whatever was bothering her. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, Melody, didn’t you say you’d run into aliens before?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Mel nodded. “Oh yea. Loads. Most were just passing by. There was one when I was about twelve. I was at my nans and my sisters had locked me out of the house again. I was sitting in the garden, sun going down, and this being hops over the fence. It looked like a seven foot tall scaled kangaroo with red eyes. It froze when it saw me. So there we are, just uncomfortably looking at each other in the dark, and it asked me why I was there. All I could say was oh I kind of live here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A round of snickering drifted through the group.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It just nodded and hopped off again. I didn’t know social awkwardness was universal until then.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why didn’t you ever ask for help?” Jack asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She shrugged. “I never felt like I needed to. Anyway, the last thing I needed was another agency snooping around. UNIT aren’t exactly subtle when they drive past you in their big trucks.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I wish I’d known. They were specifically told to leave you alone.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They were scared. That’s all. Anyway,” she said as she stood, “I have washing up to do.” She took all the plates and cups before heading off to clean them. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gwen lent forward on the table. “As long as we’re chatting, when and how did this happen?” She pointed between Owen and Tosh.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Toshiko blushed. “Oh.. Well, it just… Did I suppose. There wasn’t one serious moment.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Translation, none of your business.” Owen interjected, not quite being able to hide the smile on his face. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>After a pleasant evening the team got ready to get some sleep. Owen and Tosh decided to cuddle up together which had ended any bed space issues. Gwen curled up, happily saying goodnight to Rhys over the phone that illuminated her face in the dimly lit room. Ianto had his head rested on Jacks lap, listening sleepily to him nattering on about some story or another. As much as the welshman was listening the information was slipping away in his half conscious haze. Even Jack decided that sleeping might be a nice idea being as everyone else was, whether he needed to or not. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>At around two in the morning Gwen awoke with a gut feeling that something was off. She unlocked her phone so she could just see in the darkness. Jack and Ianto were curled up together, fast asleep. Tosh and Owen were still cuddled down asleep. Melody was missing. Gwen rubbed her eyes and plodded to the bathroom, wishing it was closer. She’d expected to run into her workmate on the way but the woman was nowhere to be seen. She decided that her friend couldn’t have gotten too far as they were locked in after all. She ascended the steps to the main area of the hub, spotting a soft glow in the darkness.    </span>
</p><p>
  
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Slither</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Can’t you sleep?” Gwen asked as she approached the sofa where Melody was bundled up in her blanket, reading something on her phone.</p><p>The tired woman glanced up. “No. I hope I didn’t wake you. I didn’t want to bother anyone so I came up here.”</p><p>“You didn’t.” She sat down on the empty side of the sofa. “Is it that you can’t sleep, or that you don’t want to?”</p><p>There was an achingly long pause before Mel shrugged. “I just don’t want to wake anyone up.”</p><p>“Naomi told me about your nightmares.”</p><p>“Oh…”</p><p>“Look, it’s ok. If anyone can empathise it’s us. You don’t have to isolate yourself for our sake.” </p><p>“I just… Feel better if I’m not burdening anyone else with it. Anyway, I can get combative if someone tries to get too close and I don’t want to hurt anyone. I’ll be fine here. There should be enough distance that it shouldn’t affect you.”</p><p>“Mel, it’s bloody freezing up here. If nothing else Owen’ll have a fit if he sees you’ve tried to sleep here.”</p><p>“I can handle it being a bit chilly. I’m not that fragile.”</p><p>“Then why are you shivering?” </p><p>She pulled her hands under the blanket to hide the slight tremor. </p><p>“Come on darlin. There’s no point in you suffering up here alone.” She rested a hand on Melodys shoulder. “Trust us.”</p><p>She blushed brightly. “I do.”</p><p>“Well then, let’s go and warm up. I’m sure you’re as knackered as I am.”</p><p>“I suppose.”</p><p>Gwen stood and offered her hand. Melody let her blanket fall as she moved, revealing that she was wearing a pink crop top and shorts showing the silvery pink scar that was messily etched over her ribs.</p><p>“I can’t feel it unless I’ve been running or something… You were thinking pretty loudly.”</p><p>“Sorry.”</p><p>“Um… Gwen?”</p><p>“Hmm?” </p><p>“I don’t mean to invade on your thoughts but they’re kind of chaotic right now and I’m confused.” Mel grabbed her blanket and folded it over her arm.</p><p>It was Gwens turn to blush. “I was just… Oh bugger it!” She lifted Melodys chin and kissed her. In shock she pushed the dark haired woman back.</p><p>“Woah. What are you doing? You have Rhys.”</p><p>“He said it’s ok. Don’t you like me?”</p><p>“Of course I do but Rhys is a good man. I don’t want to do that to him.”</p><p>“It doesn’t have to be that serious.”</p><p>“Maybe for you. I can’t separate romance and… Look, I’ve only ever been with one person in my life. I wish I could just pretend that I wouldn’t fall for you but I would. I know I would.”</p><p>“Mel.”</p><p>“I’m sorry. Let’s just forget this ever happened. It’ll just make things awkward at work and I don’t want to lose you as a friend.”</p><p>“You won’t. It’s ok.”</p><p>“It’s not… But thanks. You should get some sleep. I can always hide out in the recovery room. It’ll be warm enough.” She said before running off, not waiting for a reply. </p><p>Gwen slumped down on the sofa and sighed. “Well you ballsed that right up.” She mumbled to herself. She didn’t know whether to give chase or just let Mel calm down before talking to her. As much as she didn’t want to leave things like that she didn’t want to make it any worse. </p><p> </p><p>Melody closed the recovery room door and slid down it to the floor, her heart pounding in her ears and tears prickling at her eyes. She’d just turned down one of the few people who even had a chance of accepting her. The last person she’d have a chance for some decent human contact with. The world suddenly felt very cold and lonely. She was taking it too personally, she knew that, but it didn’t stop the pain in her chest. Clambering up onto the bed she curled up and cocooned herself in the blanket, partially hoping it would eat her and she wouldn’t have to face the morning. </p><p> </p><p>Gwen stood, setting her heart on just waking up a bit early to talk things over. As she took a step forwards her foot caught something slimy, for a moment it was just disgusting but then it began to burn. It felt like where the ooze had touched was resting on a live wire. She staggered back in the dim light. Two options sprang to mind, she either blindly hopped down to the medical bay and risk knocking something fragile, or slide down to the tide pool and hope for the best. Tide pool it was. The water was icy but it actually felt nice on the burn as whatever the slime was washed away in the salt water. What had it even been? There was no way there could have been something there before, otherwise both her and Mel would have stood on it. Pulling her sore foot from the water she limped back, using her phone as a torch. Where she’d been standing lay a half crushed eel like creature. Its skin was almost translucent. Almost like a jellyfish. </p><p>“Oh shit.” She gasped before running as fast as she could to where the rest of the team was sleeping. She switched on the lantern, making Owen pull the blanket up over both him and Tosh to block out the light. Ianto buried his face in Jacks chest. </p><p>“Gwen, as much as you’re often a ray of sunshine around here, two thirty in the morning isn’t the time to make it literal.” Jack grumbled, shielding his eyes.</p><p>She sighed. “Guys. This is important. That jellyfish thing that stung Owen earlier.”</p><p>“What about it?”</p><p>“Those weren’t tentacles. I think they were its babies.”</p><p>Owens voice rose from under his blanket. “And what gave you this great epiphany ?”</p><p>“I stepped on one.” </p><p>“What?” He pulled the blanket back down so he could look her in the eye. </p><p>“I stepped on it and it stung me. It’s dead but it didn’t just have one tentacle, did it.”</p><p>Everyone was suddenly very much awake.</p><p> </p><p>Melody couldn’t settle. She snuffled and sat up, deciding she was likely this emotional because she was tired. She’d apologise to Gwen in the morning for taking things so badly. She pushed down the blanket and yawned, grabbing her phone to light the room. In the silence of the room she heard something. Like a small voice. No, a small thought. Something simplistic. A mouse? No, something alien. </p><p>“Hello?” She said softly, her voice almost echoing off the walls. </p><p>A thought returned. <em> Hungry. </em></p><p>“You’re hungry? What do you eat? Where are you?”</p><p>
  <em> Hungry. So hungry. </em>
</p><p>“Maybe I can help you.” She felt a sudden surge of aggression and dodged as something shot through the darkness at her. Whatever it was landed against the floor with a splat. She shone her phone towards the sound and saw the long, greyish white, serpentine, creature writhing on the hard floor. She darted for the door, closing it behind her to try and keep the thing inside. There were more, she could hear their thoughts, feel their aggression. She needed to get help. The hubs corridors looked so different in the dark and she had to admit she was a little lost. She didn’t want to get cornered but if she couldn’t work out where she was going exactly it was bound to happen. She hit a security door and backed up, catching her breath. </p><p>
  <em> Hungry. Hunt. Eat. </em>
</p><p>She dodged another one which darted from the darkness, its body sliding past her hip. The residue began to burn as she kicked off the door to get a head start in the other direction. Her feet slid from underneath her and she landed hard.</p><p>“Ok, that’s it! You think hunger’s bad? Try <b>fear</b>.” She hissed, implanting the simple thought in their minds. They slithered in all directions, desperate to get away. Free of the things calculated pursuit she dragged herself down the corridor, her feet burning too much to walk on. She gave up her light to call for help. </p><p>“Come on.” She breathed as it rang. “Sorry to wake you so early, but we have a problem.”</p><p> </p><p>Ianto slipped on his earpiece and set it to answer the call. “I was already awake. Where are you?” </p><p>Jack watched as Iantos expression changed from curiosity to concern.</p><p>“Ok. Just stay there. I think I know where you are.” He ended the call. “Owen, Melody’s been stung. She’s scared the eels off for now but they’re hungry and she can’t move.” </p><p>Owen nodded. “I’ll follow you if you know where you’re going. The hell was she doing wandering around anyway?”</p><p>“She didn’t want to wake anyone up with her nightmares.” Gwen lamented as she slipped her, now dressed, foot into her trainer. </p><p>“She should just join the club. Nightmares are the standard.”</p><p>“That’s what I said.”</p><p>He shook his head and followed after Ianto. </p><p>“Tosh, any chance we can at least get the lights online?” Asked Jack. </p><p>Tosh moved her mouse to wake up her computer. “The rollback’s almost done. They should come back online automatically when it reboots.” </p><p>“How soon is almost?”</p><p>“Five minutes at most.”</p><p>“We’ll just have to be on guard until then.”</p><p> </p><p>Ianto carefully made his way across the slippery floor, Owen following his footsteps, neither man wanting to fall onto the slime. Ahead they could see a small shape, hunched over, in the darkness. Owen rushed ahead, crouching next to her.</p><p>“Mel? You still with us sweetheart?”</p><p>She nodded. “Unconsciousness would be nice right now.”</p><p>“This’ll help.” He pressed an injector against her neck, delivering the antidote. It made the pain subside quickly but the irritation would last until the venom was washed off. </p><p>She visibly relaxed a little. “Thanks.”</p><p>“We should get back upstairs. It’ll be easier to defend ourselves.” </p><p>Ianto moved to help her up but she flinched away. </p><p>“No. I fell in that stuff. You’ll get stung too. I can walk, just give me a sec.” She used the wall for support as she got up, staggering. </p><p>He pulled the sleeves of his hoodie down over his hands and picked her up. “You shouldn’t be standing, let alone walking.” </p><p>“Thanks.”</p><p>“Have you been crying?”</p><p>“What?” She looked away from him. “No. It’s just the lighting.”</p><p>He didn’t believe it for a second but it wasn’t the time to argue. Once back in the main area of the hub they found Jack setting up, what looked like, a very rudimentary trap using bacon as bait. </p><p>He looked up, hearing the three return. “How bad is it?”</p><p>“She’ll live. Just a bit sore.” Owen said, dragging a chair over for Mel to sit in while he helped her clean the venom off. </p><p>Ianto placed her down carefully and shrugged his sleeves back so he could use his hands again. He looked over at Gwen, who would usually have been giving Mel a lecture about not running off on her own before hugging the life out of her, but she was staying back and unusually silent. It didn’t take a genius to put two and two together. He felt sorry for both of them but it was better if Mel wasn’t holding onto some false hope. The lights flickered to life as the hubs computer system rebooted. They all flinched away from the light, noones eyes being ready to adjust. </p><p>Jack looked down at the trap as soon as his vision cleared. There were already nine of the eels chowing down, another slithering from underneath the coffee table to join its siblings. He kicked the box that sat precariously suspended above them, bringing it down to trap the eels.</p><p>“Think you’re up to checking they’re all under here Mel?” He asked, keeping one foot firmly on top of the plastic box. </p><p>She nodded and listened. </p><p><em> Food. Found food. Dark. Why dark? Trapped. Defend hive! Defend self! </em> </p><p>“That’s all of them but they’re getting very agitated.” </p><p>“I don’t think they’re strong enough to break out.” He smiled as Ianto brought over an old iron doorstop to hold the box down. “And that means we can all get some sleep.”</p><p>A sound, like a popping water balloon, sloshed from the box before a fine mist shot in all directions from underneath. There was no time to grab any kind of breathing protection but other than a rancid smell it didn’t seem to do anything, noone felt any different. There was a long pause before everyone relaxed. </p><p>“If that’s the best they’ve got I think we really can call it a night.” Jack chuckled. </p><p>Owen yawned. “Being as it should be safe, Gwen, can you take Mel to shower the rest of this crap off. Last thing she needs is waking up with chemical burns because we didn’t quite catch all of it.”</p><p>“I’ll be fine on my own.” Mel stood carefully. “I’ll just take my time.”</p><p>He looked between them in confusion. “Yea, you can’t go alone. Tosh? Could you go then if there’s something g-”</p><p>“Nothings going on. I just know I’ll be fine. A little sting isn’t going to stop me.”</p><p>Gwen swept forwards, placing her hands on Melodys shoulders. “Doctors orders. Anyway, I still feel a bit gross after standing on one of those things. You should all get some sleep. We won’t be long.” She guided the woman away. </p><p>“What just happened?” Owen asked as soon as the two were out of earshot. </p><p>Ianto sighed. “I’ll explain on the way.”     </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Hangover</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“So,” Melody began, pulling off her contaminated crop top, “Why did you insist on supervising me? I’m not going to tell you to go but I thought after earlier… You know.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gwen sat on the bench just beyond the showers. “I wanted to apologise.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What for? I was the one who overreacted.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No! No, you didn’t. I should have taken your history into account. I didn’t think that… Well, I didn’t think.” She stared down at the tiled floor, not wanting to seem like she was trying to oggle the other woman. </span>
</p><p>Mel turned on the water and stepped under it, closing her eyes as the heat cascaded over her. “It’s fine, really. I was the one with the crush to start with so… I’m really crap at talking about my own issues.”</p><p>
  <span>They both stayed silent for a while, steam rising and filling the air. Maybe it was the heat but they both felt a little foggy headed. Melody turned the heat down slightly, hoping to lift the cotton wool feeling. It didn’t help.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t know about you but the late night is getting to me. I feel so woozy.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Me too.” Gwen said. “Feels like I’ve had one too many.” She chuckled lightly. She knew it wasn’t a laughing matter if something was really wrong, but she couldn’t help it. It was as if she didn’t have a single worry in the world. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Mel turned. “Gwen, can you do me a favour? Can you check I got all of that goop off?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh of course.” She stood and approached, keeping just out of the water. She gave Melody a quick look over and found her eyes drawn to the metal attached to the womans back. The implants shone in the stark lighting, showing a warped reflection. It was fascinating and didn’t look like any metal Gwen had seen before. It was silver but had a kind of iridescence to it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Um… Gwen?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She jumped, her mind brought back to the moment. “Sorry. It looks like you’re clear.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good.” Melody turned around, expecting her friend to have returned to her spot on the bench. She hadn’t. “Um… Are you ok?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I… I think I’m… I feel a bit drunk. I should tell the others. Maybe that gas the worms gave off did more than we thought.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Melody began to giggle. “You’re right… But why don’t I care?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I know right? We should. We should at least be a bit nervous about it but… Nothing.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nope… Is that what it does? It stops us attacking the hive by getting us kind of stoned.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They’ve got to have realised.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If they’re awake.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You finish showering and we’ll try and wake them up.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, right. Good idea.” She took a couple of steps back into the water.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gwen didn’t move, she just watched, studying the scar across the left side of Mels ribs carefully. It was a soft silvery colour having healed so long ago but it was clear how bad it had been by the way it indented. It was jagged and showed small dots where the stitches had been. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, what’s it like?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What’s what like?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Having someone who really loves you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’ll find someone.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Mel leaned against the cold tiles of the wall. “No I won’t. Noone can see me without a shirt on let alone have that close of a relationship.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course you can. You can just tell them you had some experimental surgery.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No ones going to buy that. And I can’t lie forever. And that’s just my back. You know Naomi couldn’t even bring herself to look at the scar on my ribs.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“She was a bitch. You should just forget everything she ever said to you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No!” She wrapped her arms around Melody, holding her close. “You deserve better.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Gwen your clothes.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re right.” She threw off her shirt clumsily, much to Mels amusement. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Rhys is lucky.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You know what?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m going to show you just how lucky he is.” She took her hand and pulled her away from the water. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But didn’t I say-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“One night. Just one stupid, kind of drunken, stoned, whatever, night.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ok.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Really?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yea. When else am I going to be able to not be a nervous wreck?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Jack was the first to wake up in the morning, spending half an hour just listening to Ianto snore softly. That was his second favourite way to wake up. His first favourite wouldn’t be happening with other people in the room. He opened his eyes to see Tosh and Owen were still sound asleep and Gwen was… Not there. He carefully sat up and rubbed his head. He felt almost like he’d been drinking, his mouth dry and his head pulsing gently. He didn’t remember drinking. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ianto.” He whispered. “You’re gonna have to let go.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ianto grumbled and rolled over, pulling one of the pillows down and into his arms, falling back to sleep almost immediately. The captain decided to let him rest as the cleanup was going to be tedious when he did wake up. In the hallway there was no sign of anyone around and that could be a very bad thing. Where were Gwen and Melody? He could check the cameras from the night before if he couldn’t find them right away. He found the makeshift trap exactly where it had been the night before and nothing else had moved in the main area of the hub. Where else. The recovery room. That’s where Gwen had mentioned Mel sleeping. He didn’t hear any talking so wherever they were they weren’t awake yet. He peeked into the dark of the recovery room and saw two figures curled up under a blanket. He closed the door softly, not wanting to wake them. They were safe, that’s all that mattered. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>By the time he got back to the main area of the hub Ianto was awake, making his first batch of coffee of the day. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Morning.” Jack announced with a smile.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ianto flinched. “Morning.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What’s wrong?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sorry. I woke up with a blasting headache. We didn’t get drunk last night, did we?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No. But I woke up feeling the same. Maybe that gas last night did more than I thought.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are Gwen and Melody around? They weren’t in their beds.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yea. They’re all spooned up in the recovery room.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He paused, frowning. “Damn it Gwen.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I told Gwen to let her down gently, not give her false hope.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They were probably just cold and it was the warmest way to sleep.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I hope so. I know they talked things over last night and before they found the eels it didn’t look like it went well.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Speaking of the eels. How are we going to get them out of that box without getting stung or gassed again?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’d say that would be Owens area of expertise.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It took a while for Melody to work out where she was as she awoke. Sleeping in her new place had been jarring enough, but waking in the recovery room with a headache and vague memories of the night before was something else. It dawned on her that Gwen was still spooned up behind her, one hand resting gently over her scar, and that she was completely naked. They both were. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Gwen… Gwen wake up.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She gave a tired grumble. “Hmm?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We need to get our clothes before everyone else wakes up.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What?” The memory of the night before flooded back. She slowly sat up and rubbed her eyes. “Yes. Clothes. Oh god we left them all over the place.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yea. If you take the blanket you can grab our clothes from our lockers. I’ll clean up if you can get the security footage from last night.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No one’s going to check it, are they?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Probably not but if Owen hears about it he’ll never let us live it down.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good point. I’ll be right back.” She took the blanket and wrapped it around herself. “You don’t regret what we did last night… Do you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Melody shook her head and chuckled. “No.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good.” She beamed before scooting out of the room.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Toshiko yawned and sat up, squinting at the light that felt so much brighter than it was. She was about to swing her legs off the bed when Owen wrapped an arm around her middle.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’ve got to get up.” She smiled softly. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Can’t we call in sick?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No. We’re already here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Stupid space eel bastards.” He mumbled into his pillow.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She brushed back his hair fondly. “Well, I’m going to get ready for the day.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t even get to watch you get dressed?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nope.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s it, I’m calling in dead.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Owen.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Only for half of the day.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She rolled her eyes and made her way to take a shower. She spotted Gwen, walking towards the locker room with a blanket wrapped around herself.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Morning. Usually you get here after me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gwen jumped slightly. “Morning. Yea. It’s just the headache I think.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You have that too? By the way, I think you have a missed call. Your phone was flashing.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Who could be calling me this early?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Tosh shrugged and wandered over to her locker. It wasn’t actually locked, none of them were, but it had her name on it. She looked down to see one of Gwens shoes. Looking around there were a few pieces of clothing scattered around. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What happened in here?” She asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gwen quickly began gathering it all up. “That eel gas stuff made me feel a bit drunk last night so I kind of-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Exploded?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No.” She laughed. “Just got a bit silly.” With the discarded clothing tucked under her arm she grabbed her things from her own locker and Mels bag from hers. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is Melody alright this morning? She was acting so strangely last night.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hmm? Oh yea. She’s fine.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ianto said… Never mind.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No. Come on, what did he say.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He said she had a bit of a crush on you and you’d talked to her about it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She smiled. “We talked it over. Everything’s fine.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Really? Well… That’s great then.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’d better drop this off and go check my phone.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>By ten o’clock the hub was almost back to normal. Owen had managed to move the eels to their own sealed terrarium, planning to find out what the gas they created was made up of. Tosh had fixed the security bug and had set about making sure there were no others hiding inside the coding. Ianto had gone on a laundry run with all the blankets which was honestly just an excuse to get some fresh air. Melody was diligently decontaminating everywhere the eels had slithered and Jack was writing up a report of what had happened. If for no other reason than it made Ianto happy when he did any kind of paperwork. Gwen had finally managed to delete the camera footage from the night before so she decided to check her phone. She’d expected it to be Rhys but Andys contact was displayed brightly under the one missed call text. She called him back and waited as it rang. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Gwen. Sorry to call so early.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, it’s ok. What’s up?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, I don’t know if your lot would be able to deal with this but… The higher ups are telling us to keep our mouths shut.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“About what? You’ve skipped the important bit.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sorry, I’m standing in a hospital corridor so I’ve got to keep an eye out for the nurses. Early this morning we got a call about this group of teenagers. They were found unconscious outside their houses and they haven't woken up since. I overheard one of the doctors saying they’re all in comas. No sign of drugs or alcohol. No outwardly obvious trauma but they’ve got these black lines running from their eyes. It’s all… Sorry. I’m rambling.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This is exactly the type of thing you should call me about. Can you wait there for me?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“For the next two hours, yea.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll be there as soon as I can.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>PC Andrew Davidson didn’t know exactly what Torchwood did but he knew they turned up whenever something strange was going on, and he also knew that Gwen had disappeared off with them. He sipped the last of the weakest coffee he’d ever tasted and hoped someone turned up soon. He didn’t even know why he’d been asked to guard these kids when they weren’t exactly going anywhere. It wasn’t like he had no sympathy for them, of course he did, otherwise he wouldn’t have risked his job by calling Gwen. He dropped the empty polystyrene cup into the bin as he heard a familiar voice. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sorry we took so long. Has anything changed?” Gwen asked, Owen following close behind, his attention fixed on the door into the ward. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Nothing. Their parents have been told to stay in the waiting room for now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Do they live close together?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Not exactly. I mean they live in walking distance from each other but they aren’t neighbours.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Owen let himself into the ward, picking up each of the patients charts in turn and studying what little was on them. He’d never seen anything quite like it before. The black lines in their skin looked almost like they’d been tattooed on. He walked back to the door.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Gwen, can you and PC plod here go and talk to the parents?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Andy decided to ignore the name for the moment. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gwen nodded. “Are you staying here?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ve got a few tests I can run here but I could do with knowing where they all were last night.”   </span>
</p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Fractured</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“Sooo.” Andy said as he walked to the waiting room with Gwen. “It’s been a while since we talked.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She sighed softly, knowing this was bound to happen. “I know. It’s just been busy, that’s all. How’ve you been?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Same old same old I suppose. Carys went on maternity last week.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I didn’t even know she was pregnant.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Twins. She’s huge.” He smiled fondly. “How’s Rhys?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He’s fine. He got a promotion a little while ago.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Congrats to him.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Andy…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s fine. You got a new job, you don’t need to make excuses for not keeping in contact.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She stopped in her tracks. “It’s not as if I didn’t want to.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I know.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m here aren’t I? Came as soon as you called.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Would you have done the same if it hadn’t been one of </span>
  <em>
    <span>those</span>
  </em>
  <span> cases?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course I would have!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m surprised you’re not telling me to just stay out of the way. That’s what usually happens.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We don’t do that because we want to. We’re just trying to protect you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We… You mean Torchwood.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, I do.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What do you even do there? I can’t see you sitting around doing paperwork or making coffee or being paired up with someone like… Nevermind.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I can’t tell you what we do, you know that. I miss you too you know.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sure.” He shook his head. “Sorry. I just wish you hadn’t disappeared off the face of the earth. It’s not the same without you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re working with me today aren’t you? Hopefully Owen can find a way to wake those kids up, but until then what those parents know might be the only thing we have to work on.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He took a deep breath and nodded. “You’re right. Let’s go and find out what happened.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Melody bopped along to the tune in her head as she put away the last of the cleaning supplies, happy with how everything looked. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This is a difference from last night.” Jack mused, a warm smile on his face. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She nudged the door to the cleaning cupboard closed. “I just needed some sleep. Is there anything I can help with?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s been a few months now. I just wanted to know how you were settling in.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well I hope. If there’s anything you think I could improve on I’m happy to try.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re doing fine as far as I’m concerned.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But, you need to stop isolating yourself. You’re part of this team too.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I just want you guys to have to deal with me waking up crying.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’d rather try and find a way to help the nightmares stop.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Therapists have tried. It’s just something I’ve gotten used to.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is it always the same?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Not always. And it’s not every night, I just didn’t want to risk it… You’re not responsible for them. You know that, don’t you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He smirked sadly. “Am I that obvious?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A little bit. You shouldn’t let what happened play on your mind so much. There are some things that can’t be changed, that’s just life. The more you live in the past, the more likely you are to miss things in the here and now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You need to take your own advice some time.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She chuckled. “I know. Maybe one day I will. Oh, Ianto wanted to know if we were having a christmas get together this year. He said he needed a little time to get things organised.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That time again already? I’ll talk to him about it later. Have you got any plans for the holidays?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Not really. My parents don’t really celebrate christmas or anything. The only one that did was Naomi so I’m thinking of skipping it all together.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How are you dealing with that?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What? Naomi?... I don’t know. Ok I suppose. I mean it’s not like there’s anything to move on to so I’m just processing it as I go. I hate her so much but … It’s dumb but I miss her sometimes.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He rested a hand on her shoulder. “It’s not her you miss, it’s having someone there.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sure you’re right. Anyway,” she put her cheery work smile on, “I should get upstairs.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He frowned slightly as she rushed off. He couldn’t make her talk to him but he wished she would. He wished she’d talk openly with anyone. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Owen watched Gwen and Andy finish up another set of crying parents, glad he wasn’t the one in there. If there was something he could explain to a patient or something he could find a way of treating then he could offer some comfort but this kind of thing was out of his wheelhouse. She spotted him and slipped away to find out his side of things and all he could do was disappoint. Before she could ask anything he began.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Do they know where these kids were last night?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No. They pulled the old I’m staying over at such and such’s house and just rotated the names.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Shit.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is there anything you can do for them?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I… I’m going to try but I’m working with next to nothing. Those black lines are radiation burns but it’s not the kind you find on this planet.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Christ. Does that mean…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If they wake up they’ll be blind. I wish that was the biggest problem. From the readings I took their brain activity is getting less and less.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They’re all dying.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He nodded grimly. “I’ve got the nurses keeping a close eye on them but it won’t be long until the only things keeping them alive’ll be the machines.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Maybe Tosh can find some footage of them or something.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There is one thing we could do.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We have a telepath. Maybe she can look through their memories and find out what happened.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll go and pick her up. Try and keep them going for as long as you can.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Bring the radiation sponge back with you.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Ianto rushed forward to catch Melody as she slipped backwards off the small step ladder she was using to reach the top of the filing cabinet.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Careful.” He said, placing her down on her feet. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She dusted herself off. “Sorry. Thanks for catching me though.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m not going to let you just fall.” He smiled. “Anyway, Gwen called, she’s on her way and she needs your help.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She folded the ladder and placed it away. “Me?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Those kids Gwen got the call about. Their parents don’t know where they were when they got hurt and they can’t talk. She sounded like it didn’t look like they were doing very well.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If I can help I will.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Speaking of Gwen, how did your talk go? You had definitely been crying last night.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She blushed. “We talked things out. I overreacted, which was why I’d been crying, but after the whole eel issue we settled things.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I knew it couldn’t have gone too badly.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Jack said you two had spent the night under the same blanket. For keeping warm of course.” He side eyed her as she’d gone a very bright red. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ok, in our defence Rhys was ok with it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It took a moment for him to realise what she’d just said. He sat in his desk chair and studied her. “Wait… You two actually..”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Maybe.” She chuckled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I thought Gwen was straight.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So did I but apparently not.” She grabbed her phone and slipped it into her pocket. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So, was this just a one night stand or what?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yea, just a one night thing, but I’ll take what I can get. It was nice just not sleeping alone.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He could sympathise. He’d been in the same position for a long time, but luckily for him Jack had been single.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Before I go, I’ve completed the stationary order forms and I just need you to check the medical order forms, then I can take them to the post office tomorrow morning. I don’t know why we can’t just do them digitally but it’s a more secure method I suppose.” She had that hopeful energy to her again. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll check them while you’re out.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Andy didn’t recognise the smartly dressed woman that Gwen had brought with her. She wasn’t one of the usual team he saw. Maybe she was new? A specialist of some kind?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Gwen, the parents are asking what’s going on and my shift’s about to end. Frank’s going to be taking over and you know what he’s like.” He said, sounding calm but looking more than a little flustered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gwen gave him a sympathetic look. “Just tell him we’ve taken over. That or stay and watch me tear a chunk out of him if he says anything.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You know I can’t just do that. Can you at least tell me what’s going on?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Just, follow us for a sec. You can’t enter the ward but I’ll tell you what I can.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He looked more like a long suffering partner than an ex workmate as he followed. “So….” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The black lines are radiation burns.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Bloody hell. Is there anything that can be done?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Like I said, Owen’s trying. Right now we’re just going to try and find where that source of radiation is.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They’re unconscious. How?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Melody’s a brainwave specialist.” It technically wasn’t a lie.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He looked at the well dressed woman and swore she had to be in her late teens at most. He didn’t want to be rude but he wasn’t really buying it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Mel, this is Andy.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He gave a polite smile. “Hello.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hi.” Melody returned the gesture, closing her eyes so he could see her face without risk. She turned back swiftly, hearing the frantic thoughts from the waiting room. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>A man rushed over to them, a mix of anger and fear on his face. “Tell us what’s going on! We have a right to know!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Andy opened his mouth to try and talk the man down when he heard Melody speak. Her voice felt warm and calm. It was a strange sensation that grew from the back of his skull.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sir. Please wait a little longer. Everyone’s doing their best to help your son and sometimes that means they can’t be here to explain what they’re doing. This is an awful situation and I completely understand how frustrating this is for all of you. It might be best if you all go and get something to eat. Low blood sugar will make you feel even worse and we will contact you as soon as we have any news that we can give.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The man deflated, rubbing his face. “I… You’re right… I just want to know if my little boy’s going to be ok. You promise you’ll get me as soon as you know?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He nodded and joined his wife. The group collectively headed down to the canteen, suddenly feeling the hunger they’d been suppressing for hours. Andy was speechless. Usually he had to diffuse a full on brawl when things were that emotionally charged, but they’d all been calmed in an instant. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Wait… How did you know it was his son?” The police officer asked. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Gwen told me about what was going on during the drive. I can’t promise everything’ll be ok, but I promise we’ll do our best.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The sudden sense of ease he felt was welcome but a little confusing. “I’ll guard the ward and see if I can get Frank to stay out.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks.” Gwen smiled softly as she pushed through the doors of the ward. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Owen looked over his shoulder. “Did you bring it?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She handed the radiation sponge over and he placed it in the middle of the circle of beds he’d made so they’d all benefit from its effects. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He then dragged a chair over for Melody to sit. “Here. I don’t know what you’re going to be able to get. The little neurological activity they had is fading.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“As long as there’s something in their minds I can find it.” Melody sat and closed her eyes, blocking out all the background noise. The teenagers minds were so quiet and it was hard to pinpoint them, but she was experienced and wasn’t going to just give up. They were all so fractured, pieces of memories and feelings drifting in and out. She needed to pull them together into one piece. She used her own mind like a server to stabilise the chaos, pulling them all together. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>A teenage girl with dark eyes spoke first. “Where am I? What’s happening?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My name is Melody and I’m here to help you. I need you all to tell me what happened last night.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Last night?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It was the party, wasn’t it?” Asked one of the boys, who had already lost any idea of how he looked so his face was blank. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yea… We all met up and drove down to the ghost town.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Melody locked onto the memories they all brought up and began to piece them together. </span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Mindscape</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Melody watched through the eyes of one of the teenagers as they walked to the party through roads she vaguely recognised. It wasn’t really a party per se, just a get together. Old school friends meeting up again over the winter holidays. They all clambered into the blond haired young mans van, chattering about the trip to a long abandoned village. At the turn of the century the water in the local well became toxic so those who survived left. The people believed they’d been cursed as their animals died and crops poisoned them. The land was useless so everything was left to be swallowed by the weeds and trees. The perfect place for a little bit of exploration. They’d stepped out into the cold evening air, seeing noone else for miles. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Bloody hell Vincent, it’s freezing out here.” Gale, the woman with brown hair complained as she pulled her coat tight around her. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Vincent, the red haired boy, rolled his eyes. “It’s not that cold. Anyway, I told you to wrap up.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She huffed and followed the others into the foliage. They all spent the next few hours exploring the area, jumping out at each other and generally being teenagers, the blond man waved them all over to one of the roofless stone buildings. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s down here. I swear I saw a light down there the last time I was here but I wasn’t going on my own. It was really weird. It was warm down there.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Lilly, the girl with blue dyed hair, laughed. “That’s comforting. You probably walked up on a drug deal or something.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Out here this far? Naa.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Come on then. Show us this mysterious light.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They made their way down into a tunnel beneath the shell of a house. As they walked deeper into the derelict tunnel the air became warm and still, a stark difference from the cold wind of the world above. A dim light grew brighter ahead. Melody could feel the air change, almost as if an electrical storm was about to break. Part of her desperately wanted to tell them to turn back but these were just memories. There was nothing she could do but watch. They approached the small gap in the well wall, just big enough to peek through if you put your face up to it. The cracks in the wall matched the blackened lines on the teenagers faces. Gale was the first to look through the gap so Melody switched to her memory. Inside the cavern sat a mess of bent metal, roots that had shrivelled and blackened and a circular tank holding a mix of crystals and liquid. A euphoric feeling washed over the mind Melody inhabited, covering the burning sensation beneath. She moved through the memories quickly as they took turns looking into the hole in the wall. They only stopped when Elias said he was starting to get a headache. It was late so they all headed back to the van. The blond haired boy drove as if he was drunk and only just managed to drop the others off before he passed out in the drivers seat. He’d parked so noone else was hurt but by the morning when he was found his fingers had gone numb. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Melody pulled herself from their memories and saw that their minds had degraded even more. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You need to start sharing memories of each other. Fill in the gaps.” She said urgently. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gale frowned. “Why?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If you don’t you could lose yourself and you’ll never wake up.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Wake up?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Elias looked over, shards falling away from the intact side of his face. “That light wasn’t just light, was it?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No… It was radioactive.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’re dying. That’s what this is.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m trying to hold you together while the doctors try and save you but I need you to help each other.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gale stood and looked down over the edge of the platform they were sat on. “How irradiated are we? Do we even have a chance?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Do you want me to be brutally honest ?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The radiation has been absorbed and now they’re just trying to help heal the damage that’s been done… You looked directly into the source so the worst of it is to your eyes and brain.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are we even going to still be us?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You can live a perfectly normal life blind-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s not what I mean! Am I going to be able to remember my own name after this?!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Mel looked away, not knowing how to answer. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Vincent stood and rushed over to guide Gale away from the edge. “We’ll work it out.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Get your hands off me! This is all your fault.” The brown haired girl slapped him with her still visible hand. “If you hadn’t suggested this trip we’d all be home right now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Melody hopped over the gap between their platforms and stood between them. “Please, this is no ones fault. It was just a horrible accident.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And who or what the hell are you?!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m just trying to help you. I know you’re scared-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Scared?! We’re fucking dying!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If you all share your memories you might have a chance. You have to keep fighting. Please.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sobbing, Gale shook her head. “I can’t. Just let me forget everything. I can’t risk being trapped like that… I was meant to be going to uni for a fine arts degree.” She collapsed into Melodys arms, her cries and sobs sending waves through the mindscape. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m so sorry.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The others surrounded her in what was essentially a group hug. All together she could give them some of their fractured memories back but they had to want to survive if they were ever going to wake up. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Owen saw a spike in Lillys brain activity, the first good sign since they’d arrived. Their radiation levels had dropped to zero but most of the damage had already been done. If they were lucky their brains could compensate for the damage, but it was possible that it had already eaten away too much of their brains to rewire. He threw the radiation sponge back to Gwen and began the process of moving the beds back to their original positions. The next rotation of nurses would arrive soon and it was actually useful to have a bit more man power. It wasn’t easy caring for six comatose patients at once.  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Melody suddenly snapped from her trance. “Pen and paper. Need a pen and paper.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gwen took a notebook and pen from her pocket and handed it over. Mel started writing directions furiously,. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are you ok? What happened in there?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Melody closed the notebook and nodded. “I did my best but… I don’t know if it worked.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There’s improvement in a few of them and by the looks of it you found out where they were. You did the best you could.” Owen assured her, keeping his eyes on the multiple monitors. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Gale wasn’t handling it well… I don’t know if I convinced her to keep fighting.” She frowned deeply, feeling the echoes of the teenagers despair. The blonde boy, Max, hadn’t spoken but she had felt how empty he’d been too. “How long was I out?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gwen took over as Owen was occupied. “About an hour. I’ll send your directions to Jack and we’ll see about getting you back to the hub.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>One of the monitors began to screech and Owen hit a button on the wall. “Gwen, take her out to the waiting room.” He gestured to the door as two doctors and three of the nurses ran in. Gwen ushered Melody out, seeing that Andy was still in the waiting room, even though his shift had been over for a while. He stood looking for an explanation as to what was going on. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Just give us a few minutes.” She said softly, rubbing Mels back. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He looked around and beckoned them to a side room that was quiet, closing the door behind them. “The families are still down in the cafe so you should have a bit of privacy in here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks. I thought you would have gone home by now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’d only be thinking about it at home so I might as well be here. Did you find out where they went?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yea. We’ll deal with it. Make sure noone else gets hurt.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That noise didn’t sound good.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Melody stared at the floor. “Gale just passed away. The doctors are trying to save Vincent and Max.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh… I should stay for the doctors when they tell the parents.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was a long silence as Gwen sat with one arm around Melodys shoulders and the other hand free to send a message to Jack, broken when the blond woman whimpered lightly, clutching the side of her head. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are you ok sweetheart?” Gwen asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She shook her head. “Too loud. Vincent doesn’t want to go but he isn’t strong enough to keep going. There’s someone with a broken ankle that just tried to walk on it on the floor below us. There’s a family saying goodbye to their grandma and they’re all screaming inside too.” Her words were soft but Andy heard her clearly in the silent room. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Let’s get you outside. It should be quieter there.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Gwen, what’s-” He began before being cut off.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll explain outside.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She led them both through the hospital and outside to the car. The colour returned to Melodys face as she sat in the passenger seat. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Andy crossed his arms. “This explanation then…” He wasn’t angry, just confused and more than a little frustrated. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Melody </span>
  <b>is</b>
  <span> a brainwave expert, just in a more direct way than most people would expect.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Eh?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“She’s a telepath.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh come off it. If you didn’t want to tell me the-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“-n you could just say. I’m not a moron Gwen, there’s no such thing as real psychics. Wait, how’s she doing that?” Melody said in perfect time, not even looking up at him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Bloody hell… That’s an impressive trick.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If it was a trick then I would have to look at you. Think of a number between one and one million, including decimal places.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He glanced at Gwen, who nodded. “Ok. What number am I thinking of?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Twelve thousand three hundred and forty two point six. You considered thinking of a colour instead just to throw me off but then decided to just go with it. That colour was going to be blue and yes, my fringe is over my eyes, but that’s for your safety.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He blinked, trying to work out how that was possible. It wasn’t unless she really was psychic. “So you were reading their minds to find out where they’d been?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Exactly. Sorry I couldn’t stay in there any longer.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s fine. I didn’t even think about how loud it would have been in there for you.” Gwen smiled sympathetically. “Thanks for putting yourself through that to help.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m just glad it worked.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sorry, are we just going to move past the fact that real psychics exist?” He looked between them. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gwen gave him her most serious look. “Don’t make a big deal out of this. If Jack found out that you knew we wouldn’t be the only ones in trouble.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re trusting me with this? Why?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Because Jack’s on his way to pick me up and he doesn’t want Melody anywhere near the radioactive crap we have to get rid of, and as she can’t drive and Owen’s still trying to save those kids I could really do with someone keeping her safe.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I knew she was younger than you were acting like she was.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What? No, she’s twenty one, but this place is chaos and pain for her. Just until Owen gets out. As soon as the kids are stable enough he’ll take her back to work.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Can’t I just give her a lift?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh brilliant idea. I’ll just give directions to our secret base of operations, shall I?” She smirked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fine fine. I didn’t have anything else planned anyway.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thank you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yea.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I mean it. You’d have every right to tell me to sod off and just go home to put your feet up.”  </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Melody agreed. “Thanks. Sorry to be a bother. I’ll be fine in a little bit, it’s just all that mental noise makes me a bit disorientated. Once it’s settled we can go back into the warm, I just need a bit to get my head together.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was another two hours before Owen was free to leave after briefing the other doctors on the list of treatments that would be necessary for the survivors. It was great that there were survivors at all but sometimes he wondered if they’d agree. The reconstructive surgery around the eyes where the flesh had been burned would be traumatic on its own, even if there wasn’t extensive brain damage. He took a deep breath as he left the building, appreciating the fresh air. He’d settle his mind then find wherever the hell Melody had got to after Gwen left her there. To his surprise he wouldn’t have to look far. Her and Andy were sitting on a bench just to the side, hands wrapped around two polystyrene cups of coffee for the warmth more than to drink them. They looked like old friends who were catching up. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I kind of liked Paranormal activity. It was something different, you know?” She said, looking down into her cup.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Andy chuckled. “I didn’t think you’d be the horror type.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I love a good horror movie.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Shame there aren’t many good ones, eh?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fair point.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He looked up. “Oh, it looks like it’s been longer than we thought.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hmm?” She turned. “Owen. Are they…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Owen sighed. “Three survived.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh… I’m sorry.” Her face fell. “Should we go?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yea. Just give me a few minutes.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Of course.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He walked to the car in silence. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Is he going to be alright?” Andy asked, standing and throwing his coffee cup in the bin. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She nodded. “He just needs a moment to let things sink in. Thanks for staying with me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t mind. It’s been nice chatting to someone outside of work. God that sounds a bit sad, doesn’t it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, no, you’re just busy. If you can’t get hold of Gwen you have my number. Or if you’re bored.” She smiled softly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And you’ve got mine if anything happens that isn’t whatever Torchwood really deal with. I still can’t believe you dated that woman. It took three officers just to get her into the car for transport.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Sounds about right. Have a safe drive home.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You too.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She waved as she jogged away to the car where Owen was waiting, head lent back and eyes closed. She slid into the passenger seat. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Looks like you made a friend.” He said, not moving. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Andy’s nice.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He’s not the worst person. He doesn’t bitch when we turn up.” He opened his eyes and pulled himself together. “Right, let’s get back. Hopefully Harkness has sorted out the radiation problem.” </span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Tidying up</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Walking down into an ancient tunnel while wearing a full radiation suit was not what Ianto had planned for his day, but his plans rarely went exactly as they should. Jack had marched ahead, as per usual, and Gwen was trailing a little. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What’s on your mind?” Ianto asked, his voice muffled in the protective suit. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She looked up. “Hmm? Oh, nothing much.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How did your conversation go last night?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ianto Jones! Are you asking for gossip?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Not at all. Gossip would suggest I don’t already know half of the story.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I can hear you smirking.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m being completely serious. I just want to know if you’re both on the same page.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We were just having a bit of fun and she deserved to feel good about herself for once. The more she tells me the more I wish I’d punched her ex. She’s ok with that isn’t she?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yea, she’s fine with that. I just wanted to make sure. Does Rhys know?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He’s fine with it. Are you looking out for us?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“As adorable as you’re both being, and as much as I’d love to keep listening in, we’re here.” Jack said, his grin audible, as he pointed at the hole in the well wall that light was pouring out of. Ianto cursed silently to himself, knowing his partner was never going to let this go until he knew the whole story. That was a problem for later. Their current problem was how to deal with whatever this was throwing off radiation. The captain peeked through the gap in the wall, his tinted visor protecting him from harm. The metal mesh surrounding the core had torn and twisted in the heat. The core itself had a large crack running up the clear casing, leaking constantly boiling luminescent liquid into the soil below. The crystals floating inside drifted up and down as they’d likely been doing for decades. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well, looks like there’s only bad news here.” The captain began, stepping away from the wall. “We can’t move it without risking the whole thing breaking open and it’s been leaking for a long time. Who owns this land?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ianto glanced around, looking over at the water dripping down the walls. “I believe it’s owned by the government after the last owner died with no next of kin, sir.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We won’t have to ask permission to fill this place in then. No idea how we’re going to get a cement mixer this far out though.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We don’t need to.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You have a plan?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gwen chuckled. “It’s Ianto, of course he has a plan.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ianto held up a can of the decontamination foam. It was similar to expanding insulation foam but turned up to the maximum. Once solid it could withstand a moderately sized blast and could contain most types of radiation. Useful stuff. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Jack took the can. “You both head out. Get a head start.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t wait too long.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I won’t.” He began pulling away parts of the damaged wall so he could drop the can inside once it was primed. He pulled the tab from the top and dropped it through the hole, yellowish foam spilling out of it and rapidly expanding, only one step behind Jack as he made his way out of the dark tunnel. Outside, Ianto pulled off the helmet of the radiation suit, appreciating the cool air blowing past his face. Radiation suits were not comfortable. Gwen did the same, leaning against one of the half dead trees.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m surprised she told you.” She said, her breath rising into the cold air. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He pulled off his gloves. “I half guessed… I hope Jack managed to out run that foam.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s Jack.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As if on cue Jack clambered out of the well tunnel. “Did you miss me?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Owen was quiet on the drive back, his attention seemingly on the road. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are… Are you going to be ok?” Melody asked softly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yea.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If you need to talk-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Leave it alone. I know helping people is your thing but talking isn’t mine.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ok.” She looked out of the window at the world passing by.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Really?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If you don’t want to talk about it you don’t have to.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Gwen usually pushes the issue.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m not Gwen. If I push you, you’ll just close off more. I’d rather you feel like you can if you ever need to talk, than feel like I’m going to lecture you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“... You ok?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Me? I wasn’t the one in there.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You were in their heads.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She shrugged. “I didn’t want to force them to fight if they didn’t want to… Does that make me responsible?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Course not. You respected their free will. I’d be pissed if you’d just made them into puppets. Anyway, you making them fight wouldn’t have guaranteed their survival. It’s a fucked up situation but you can’t carry it with you. It’ll eat you alive if you do.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I suppose… Sorry. You don’t need my issues.” She put her work smile on but it didn’t meet her eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He darted his eyes over to her before looking back at the road. “Are you sleeping alright?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I get enough sleep.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And the nightmares?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m used to them. Seriously, I’m fine.” She absent mindedly played with the pendant hanging around her neck. “I’m not going to make a fuss about some bad dreams.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He knew that pushing the issue would make things worse. They had that in common. He pulled into the garage, noting that the SUV was still out. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey Mel. Why don’t you head home. It’s been a long twenty four hours.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh. Are you sure?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yea. If anyone has a problem I’ll deal with it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She smiled softly. “Thanks.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He nodded in acknowledgement and watched her leave before letting out the breath he’d been unconsciously holding. It had been a long day, too long. Part of him wanted to get a drink, the other part just wanted to grab Tosh and go home. It wasn’t that he couldn’t handle death. Of course he could, he had for years. It was sometimes living that was hard to cope with. From the diabetic kid who’d had to have his foot amputated just before he was meant to be playing a football game that he knew a talent scout would be at, to a pianist who lost all movement in her hand after tripping in the street and hitting her head. Death was an ending but those types of injuries that turned your life on its head just left you staring into the abyss. It wasn’t fair. He needed to leave it behind or it would be on his mind for weeks. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rhys had been home for about an hour when Gwen walked into their home. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hello stranger.” He smiled. “Busy day?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She dropped her bag by the door. “Just a bit. Not every day we have an accidental lockdown, hungry space worms and a radioactive core in an old well.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Very busy.” He tilted his head and brushed her hair behind her ear, revealing a mark on her neck. “Gwen… What’s this about?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hmm? Oh, remember you mentioned it would be ok if I found a woman I fancied?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh!” He visibly relaxed. “Who was it then? Come on, I want details.” He teased. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You know who. Anyway, we got a bit off our faces last night because of those space worms and one thing led to another.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Was she better than me?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Gwen slapped his arm playfully. “Knock it off.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What?” He chuckled. “I need to know what I’m up against.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I love you.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Love you too. Now, I don’t know about you but I’m starving.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I wouldn’t mind ordering in.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No argument here.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Melody flopped down onto her mattress, wrapped in her dressing gown and ready to get some sleep. Her phone buzzed like an angry wasp from her jacket pocket. For a moment she considered ignoring it but thought better of it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hi mum.” She answered, holding her phone to her ear as she lay back down. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How are you?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Long day, but other than that. What’s up?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Just checking up on you. Your nan wants to see you over christmas at some point.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No problem. I’ll catch the train in a couple of weeks.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And your dad wants you to see your sisters.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Mum-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I know. I know. You don’t get along.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They hate me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They don’t hate you. Delilah asked about you last time she visited.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s because she likes to feel superior. They’ve made it very clear they want to pretend I don’t exist.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What about your nephew?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“When he’s old enough it can be explained to him but for now he’s better off not knowing me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Melody, don’t be so stubborn.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Mum, I’ve had a very long day, can we not get into this?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You work in an office. How stressful can it be?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I went to help a group of coma patients at the hospital today.” She could feel the lump in her throat rising painfully. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Mel you can’t tell people about your condition. They-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Three of them died mum.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was an achingly long pause before she replied. “Oh sweetheart. I’m sorry. Are you going to be alright?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yea.” She sniffled, rubbing her eyes. “I just want to get some sleep.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll tell your sisters you’re busy. Try and talk to them in the new year, yea?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Ok.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I love you sweetpea.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Love you too.” She hung up and tossed her phone onto her bag, curling up under her duvet.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
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